Microsoft Rumored to Buy Fallout: New Vegas Developer Obsidian

A report by Kotaku suggests that Microsoft is trying to acquire developer Obsidian.

Citing three sources who have been “briefed on the negotiations,” the report claims that the deal is not finalized yet but is believed to be “all but done.” Some of the sources close to the deal say that the announcement is just a matter of “when, not if.” Microsoft would not confirm the report when they were reached out to for more information. Hilariously, Obsidian stated that “we don’t comment on rumors or speculation other than to say that the Rumors album by Fleetwood Mac still holds up.”

Continuing the no comment game is a representative from Private Division; a 2K Games label that was reportedly set to publish an upcoming Obsidian project. That representative stated that “While it is our policy not to comment on rumors or speculation, we look forward to publishing the upcoming RPG from Obsidian Entertainment, and remain confident in the team there to deliver an outstanding game.”

That statement seems to suggest this deal will not alter Obsidian’s agreement with Private Label, but it may impact which systems the untitled Obsidian project is released for.

In case you’re wondering, this would be a major acquisition by Microsoft and possibly the company’s biggest acquisition since they announced they had acquired Ninja Theory. A quick look at Obsidian’s resume reveals that they have made some of the greatest RPGs of all time. On that list are titles like Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords (a game that we think quite a lot of), Fallout: New Vegas, South Park: The Stick of Truth, and Pillars of Eternity. They’re a tremendous RPG studio that has spent many recent years making old-school isometric RPGs. While that style affords them many creative benefits, their move away from bigger budget 3D titles is also believed to be due to the high cost of such projects.

Obviously, a deal with Microsoft would put such projects back into play again. Dare we dream of a big-budget RPG that features the depth, subtle storytelling and incredible character development of an Obsidian title as well as the best of modern graphics and sound? We may soon find out.

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Matthew Byrd is a staff writer for Den of Geek. He spends most of his days trying to pitch deep-dive analytical pieces about Killer Klowns From Outer Space to an increasingly perturbed series of editors. You can read more of his work here or find him on Twitter at @SilverTuna014.